Paul Debois

For the best part of 18 months I’ve been stomping all over Lila Das Gupta’s garden, leaving size nine footprints all over her carefully prepared borders and raised beds – all in the name of art! Or at least tasteful photography!

In her Gardeners’ World blog posting from 23rd July, Lila kindly says she has been inspired whilst watching me work – obviously forgetting the horticultural casualties along the way! It’s interesting when you work with someone in a professional capacity how quickly you pick up tricks and ideas from their field of expertise. Although not green fingered, I now have a lot more gardening confidence  and will be looking at my patch in a new way next year, when it is completely redesigned and replanted……. but Lila, as yet, I still don’t sieve my compost!

So, a quick reminder that Jason Ingram and I will be running our second course on garden photography on 26th September 2010, at the Royal Photographic Society in Bath. It’s aimed at people who have a basic photographic knowledge and preferably have an SLR camera.   (See the posting on the previous course.) This will be followed next year by four seasonal courses, at the beautiful garden at Mill Dene in the Cotswolds. These are also with the Royal Photographic Society and details will be posted on their site in the very near future.

One of my last Kodachrome images - taken in 1990

I’ve recently been reading postings on forums regarding the demise of Kodachrome, a film which has been used by generations of photographers, amateurs and pros alike.  Introduced in 1935, it was available in various forms until 2009, when Kodak announced it would cease production due to a fall in demand. If you are one of the few who have any rolls left, remember you have until 30th December 2010 to get it to Dwayne’s Photos in Parsons, Kansas, the last place still processing this film, when even they will stop.

I shot my first rolls of Kodachrome in 1979 and was amazed at the saturated colour which could be achieved compared to contemporary offerings, such as Ektachrome 64, also from the Kodak stable. At that time, most of my professional work was in black and white and I don’t remember using it for commercial photography until 1988, when I started to contribute to Car Magazine.

Car was the leading automotive magazine of the period, and under the art direction of Adam Stinson, it produced some of the most innovative car photography in Europe and the USA, influencing many magazines worldwide. Adam favoured Kodachrome, so when I was invited to start shooting for Car, I spent many an hour negotiating the Fulham Palace Road during the London rush hour, trying to get to the Kodachrome collection/delivery point in time to meet the evening deadline. At that time, barmy as it may seem, film shot in the UK could only be processed in Paris. I think it was a 24 hour turnaround, and it was always an event opening each of the returned boxes and spreading the frames, in their classic card mounts, over the lightbox.

Ultimately, for me and I suspect for many others, this impractical method of processing was the beginning of Kodachrome’s downfall. As a new generation of films emerged around 1990 which provided equally great colour rendition and saturation, practical alternatives were established. For many Fuji Velvia, still in production today, became the alternative of choice. It was possible get this, and other E6 slide films, processed quickly and easily and in front of an art director in under two hours. Commercially it made sense to move away from Kodachrome – sadly, it no longer fitted into a lot of photographers’ workflows. Then digital came of age!

The last time I used Kodachrome was around 1990, when  I was asked to shoot a series of car books. After the first book, I made several calls to the publisher asking to switch from Kodachrome. He saw the quality of the Velvia test rolls I had sent, and (reluctantly at first) agreed to let me shoot the remaining books on Fuji stock. To this day, I still think this was the right decision!

Despite it being something that I currently wouldn’t have much use for, I’d love to see Kodachrome survive in some form, as it adds to the flavour and mix of the photographic world. Unfortunately the process is so complicated, I doubt it will be viable for anyone to try to take it over.

As a footnote, Polaroid pretty much finished instant film production a couple of years ago – but with the Impossible Project taking over what remained of the production plant, the concept of Polaroid instant film is still with us. (Fuji instant film has been in constant production for many years, but doesn’t have the same following). Polaroid themselves have taken an about-turn and have produced a new camera and instant film, the Polaroid 300 – and have appointed Lady Gaga as their Creative Director, so there may well be hope for analogue devotees!

A quick update to the post in January, regarding Section 44 of the Terrorism Act 2000. The European Court of Human Rights has rejected the governments appeal against the ruling, which states S44 is in breach of Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights. There are still ways the police can stop photographers, should they choose to do so, but it is a step in the right direction.

For more information, see the I’m a Photographer, Not a Terrorist website.

To continue with the campaign, another gathering of photographers has been planned for Sunday 4th July at 12 noon, outside Scotland Yard.

wooden remembrance cross at the Somme memorial at Thiepval

Two days ago I had the opportunity to visit the Somme region in Northern France whilst on an assignment. I have driven past the area countless times on car shoots, but  this time I made a particular point of stopping and visiting some of the World War One cemeteries.

The most moving was at Thiepval, which is the site of the largest British war memorial in the world. Designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens and opened in 1932 by the Prince of Wales, you can see inscribed the names of the 73,357 British and South African men who fell at the Somme and have no known grave.

It had a real sense of calm, and judging by the reactions of the people visiting, it still has great significance. Whilst walking around, reading the names, I found a wooden cross with a dedication written by a child. It said, “In remembrance of E. Singleton, the bravest man I know.” This really touched me. Even after nearly one hundred years, new generations are still identifying with the waste of life that has become indelibly linked to the Battle of the  Somme.

After several Google searches I couldn’t find an obvious identification for E. Singleton, but would be intrigued to find out more.

the Somme memorial at Thiepval

detail of the Somme memorial at Thiepval

Paul Debois using large diffusers to soften midday sun

Whenever I speak to my mother on the phone, the conversation always drifts towards the perils of the weather, and the effects it has on photography. I think she still worries about me wearing a hat or that I remembered to take a flask of hot coffee with me! Unless it is sunny.

Then the comment is, “It must have been a great day for photography.” But no!

Whether I’m shooting gardens, flowers or cars, fierce, bright sun and a cloudless blue sky is nearly always a nightmare. Finding natural shade at the top of a mountain pass to park a sports car covered in chrome is nearly impossible. And wide landscapes with trees casting dark shadows over beautifully designed borders makes you look to the sky in desperation for help. Not for divine intervention, but for cloud. Even a little one. A few seconds would do!

Any photographer working outside will spend hours waiting for the light to change – it’s always too bright or too cloudy, much to the annoyance of whoever you are working with. On a recent  shoot for Gardeners’ World, a photograph was taken of me working under a tent created with white cloth suspended on light stands – all to capture an area about a metre square. Midday sun is very difficult to work in – especially for a journalist when lunch is imminent!

I know I’m lucky to be able to work outside of an office environment. But that perfect gin and tonic weather, when all you want to do is sit in a deck chair and listen to Test Match Special on the radio, is often not much use to a snapper. Unless the offer is a G&T!

For the last two years I have run various workshops on garden and flower photography, for both groups and individuals. On Sunday 2nd May this year, I teamed up with fellow Gardeners’ World photographer Jason Ingram, to host a course at the Royal Photographic Society in Bath.

We wanted a friendly atmosphere, so kept the whole day very informal. We discussed the equipment we use, as well as sharing some of the tips and tricks used by garden photographers. In the afternoon we ran a practical session, using a still life, to demonstrate the maxim, “Keep it simple.” With just a fabric background and a home made reflector, we shot the photos you see here. 

Lilac vase

clematis montana in vase

We also had a critique session, where we discussed the photographs brought to the course by the students. It was very interesting to see how Jason and I saw the images from different viewpoints and made different suggestions on how the work might be developed! 

The feedback we got suggested that everyone attending the workshop enjoyed themselves and felt they had gained valuable experience. As a result, we will be taking another course on 26th September.

stop clause 43

“Clause 43 was dropped from the Bill yesterday. Following further reflection, the Government will aim to reintroduce measures along similar lines when an opportunity arises in the new Parliament.” - Stephen Timms, then Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills; Financial Secretary, HM Treasury –  [from a letter dated 8th April 2010]

A short update – the controversial clause 43 has been removed from the Digital Economy Bill described in the previous post. The problem has not gone though, so pressure still needs to be maintained. When a new Government is formed it could reappear.
For more information, see  www.stop43.org.uk

www.stop43.org.uk

The Digital Economy Bill is on the verge of being rushed through to the statute books before the general election later this year. It is a wide ranging bill, obviously aimed at regulating the digital economy – which is not necessarily a bad thing.

But it has a big flaw. Clause 43 would allow the use of “Orphan Works” – photographs, illustrations and other artworks whose owners cannot be found.

Originally intended to allow non-profit organizations to make use old archives, many corporate bodies have realized that with clause 43, there is a huge amount of money to be made with ‘unidentified’ work.

From the www.stop43.org.uk website:

Clause 43 says that if someone finds your photograph, wants to use it and decides that they can’t trace you, they can do whatever they like with it after paying an arbitrary fee to a UK Government-appointed “licensing body”. You’ll never know unless you happen to find it being used in this way, in which case you should be able to claim some money.

There’s more. Clause 43 also introduces “Extended Collective Licensing”.

This means that if someone finds your photograph and can trace you, they still don’t have to contact you for permission to use it. They can go to a UK Government-appointed “collecting society” and ask them instead. They’ll pay an arbitrary fee and be able to do whatever they like with the photograph. Your photograph. Again, without asking you first or paying what you would have charged.

www.stop43.org.uk

Many MP’s have started to realize the Bill’s implications.  Austin Mitchell has tabled an Early Day Motion, asking for  it to be given a proper reading, rather than being rushed through in the last days of this Parliament. Let’s hope common sense prevails.

For more information, please visit: www.stop43.org.uk